The Balanced Mind- on Doing and Being

  In the world of spiritual practices, there are what I call “doing” and “being” prayers. In “doing” prayers, the operative words are “getting, having, desiring and fixing.” They are active, focused and very involved with living in our daily worlds, and they definitely have their places in our active lives. On the other hand, “being” prayers, which have a much lighter focus, can involve letting becalming emerge in the center of individual well being. During these times the world and its unceasing demands are laid aside while we engage in a mindset that allows us to “rest in the Lord,” as the Psalmist wrote. This prayer allows us to withdraw from the often bruising public activity that calls to us and simply let ourselves be steadily restored by the internal healing that always awaits. This truly means engaging in slowed, peace-allowing thinking that lets mental renewal take place, not in aimless, scattered notions that fly around in the mind. 

Simple Contemplation...

If prayer is too religious a concept, how about the idea of simple contemplation, perhaps of a quiet sunset or a special insight on a remembered joy? Any time the mind will cease or at least slow down its hurried wanderings, the element of healing can restart, for when the mind keeps banging along indefinitely, its energies tend to get used up.

Letting the mind retreat...

At any rate there is great value in letting the mind retreat into the quiet light of simply being refreshed. Then, once more, we can move with renewal into the doing deliberations that our lives require.

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